This Is The Reason Why
by Paradichloricbenzene
Summary: This is the reason why England is by himself. This is the reason why he adopted the responsibility to become the whole United Kingdom. This is the reason why his brothers are gone. Better summary inside, T rated for British cusses, character death, etc...
1. Is This Some Kind Of Sick Joke?

This is the reason why Arthur is by himself.  
>This is the reason why he adopted the responsibility to become the whole United Kingdom.<br>This is the reason why his brothers are gone.

When Alfred stumbles across Arthur gazing on a picture of his brothers, the American's annoying questions finally gets an answer - Arthur recalls the horrifying events of his teenage years on his Brother's deaths.

Based off Ao Oni 5.2 and 6.22, layout of mansion is 5.2 and character death is 6.22. Character deaths will be arranged differently to the actual storylines. Point of view changes from England and America present day, Arthur's point of view when he was 14 and third person view when Arthur was 14.

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><p>Sup bro!<br>Go away America - I'm not in the mood for your tom-foolery today.  
>You're never in the mood for me! In fact, you haven't been in the mood for ANYONE today, or yesterday, or the whole week!<br>And? Bugger off.  
>Heeeyyy... What's this?<br>Give that back you git!  
>Huh? This is you, isn't it? Such weird clothing! -laughs-<br>That was fashion during those ages! Give that ba-  
>Who're these three?<p>

England?  
>...my older brothers...<br>Brothers? So kinda like my Uncles, huh?  
>You could say that...<br>So, how come I've never seen them before?  
>You never see them because they're not around anymore.<br>Around? So they just took a hike?

Tell me what happened to them! I'll be quiet and not interrupt or anything!  
>... Very well... It started with a rumour...<p>

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><p>On the outskirts of the city, there's an uninhabited mansion.<br>Rumour had it that the place is haunted...  
>My Brothers and I decided to go explore said mansion.<p>

All four of us stood inside of that mansion in the foyer, facing each other as we talked aimlessly about where we were and what we could do. At fourteen years old Human-wise, I had no idea what to do inside of a haunted mansion. After all, it was just a story, nothing real. Ghosts, fairies, unicorns, none of them existed. As much as my brothers tried to convince me, I just never saw any of them-

* * *

><p>Dude! You didn't believe in your Flying Mint Sheep then?<br>It's Flying Mint BUNNY you git! Shut up or I won't finish the story!  
>Sorry...<br>Anyway.

* * *

><p>My oldest brother's voice cut through my teen-angst monologue in my head with his Scottish accent.<p>

"The interior is cleaner than I thought!"

My eldest brother was called Scotland or 'Scottie' as we all dubbed him. His Human name was Allistor and he was seventeen Human years old. Like the trait in my family, we all donned bushy eyebrows and light hair yet my Scottie had bright ginger hair and smoked heavily.

"H-Hey... That's enough... Let's go home!"

My third older brother was called Ireland and his Human name was Connor. He was only one Human year older than me with straight light brown hair and blue eyes.

"What's wrong, Connor? You scared?"

Scottie loved to jeer us all. To comply, all my second older brother, Jack, could do was nod in agreement. He represented Wales and Jack was his Human name. He was sixteen years old with gold brown wavy hair and drooped turquoise eyes as if he wasn't interested in anything. That was when in the background, down the corridor behind me; the sound of a plate smashing was heard and echoed for a few seconds around the mansion. The sudden interruption of silence scared us all but not as much as Connor. He'd always been timid.

"C-Come on... Let's leave already..."

"You're all bloody ridiculous..." Was the only thing I could think to say. Here I was wasting my afternoon with a bossy-boots, a walking nervous wreck and a silent bastard. "There can't be such things as Ghosts, scientifically speaking." I had to prove them wrong. I needed to do so. So turning on my heel, I stormed off down the corridor and towards the direction of the noise without regard for the danger I had been putting myself in. If only I knew then...

"W-Wait! Arthur! Be careful!"

* * *

><p>Arthur stormed down the corridor, ignoring Connor's cries and calls for him to come back and be careful. 'If he cares so bloody much, why doesn't he simply come after me?' He wondered furiously, passing by the door to the left of him and headed to the door in front, opening it and closing behind. He was stood in a room, combining three different rooms in one with ugly green wallpaper and unvarnished wooden floors to match. To the immediate right of him was a large cream rug on the floor with the same colour sofas - one facing him, one facing the front wall and one facing the door. In front of him was a large table with four chairs, pushed under as if no one had used them. To the right of this was a small kitchen, complete with fridge, oven-and-grill, steamer and cupboards. On the floor in the small kitchen was the very broken plate that had scared the Kirkland brothers earlier. Arthur grinned and walked over to it. 'Just a Broken Plate... Perfect. If I bring a shard back, they'll simply see it was a plate, laugh it off and we can leave!' The Brit bent down and grabbed a shard before heading back to the door and leaving the confusing three-in-one room. But from down the corridor, he couldn't see his brothers. Typical. They were hiding so they could jump out and scare him. Grinning still, he headed to the foyer and checked around to see if he could find his supposed hiding brothers.<p>

But there was no one.

"Where is everybody...?" Arthur wondered before heading to the front door and trying the handle. Nothing. It wouldn't turn. 'The door won't open!' This sent the Brit into panic as he tried it more before thumping on the door. No use. If his brothers were outside and were blocking the door, he would have heard the Scot's obnoxious giggles. A sigh escaped his lips as he turned and headed down the left corridor, opposite to the one he came from. This corridor was identical to the one on the right. Only this one had black doors with glass panels set into it. 'Obviously, these must be bathrooms.' Arthur walked over to the nearest glass-set door and reached out for the handle, only to stop as he saw a shadow cover over his hand. Slowly, the teen looked up in fear as he spotted a shadow through the glass, staring down at him. His eyes widened yet within the space it took to blink, the shadow disappeared into the room and hid from view. This had shaken the poor boy up. Backing up, he stared at the door and as his back hit the wall he let out a yelp of surprise. Only then daring back to look at the wall, he began to laugh at his foolishness. There was no Shadow. He had simply imagined it! Testing the doors properly, he found none of them opened. Neither did the one north to the foyer. "Stupid gits - if this is some kind of sick joke, I'm going to kick them all in the bollocks..."

The Brit padded through the house, testing every door that came into view yet none of them wanted to open to him. 'Blast it...' He thought, scowling as he made his way to the second floor. 'Where could they be hiding?' He asked himself, testing another door to no surprise of it not opening. 'That's it. One last door and then I'm leaving properly. I'll break through a window or something...' As he entertained the idea, he passed the stairs heading up into gloom and towards the last door on the floor, reaching over and trying the handle before pulling it down and pushing on the door. It slowly swung open silently, the door not making a single creak. "Aha! Finally!" Arthur stepped into the room and shut the door behind him before surveying the new room. Inside the room, despite Arthur's assumptions on how a mansion should be, it was rather plain. To the right of him was a single bed with plain white sheets; to the left, another large cream rug and a coffee table. At the back of the room was a desk - nothing on it, with a chair like the one in the dining area also accompanied by two bookshelves, a large chest of drawers, a small chest of drawers and a closet. If they were hiding in here, the most obvious places were the bed, desk and closet. First checking under the bed, he found no one there. Yet as he stepped further into the room towards the desk, the closet suddenly shook violently before stilling, causing the youngest Kirkland brother to almost die of a heart-attack in surprise. "Bl-Bloody Hell!" He yelled, waiting for his heart to calm before stalking over to the closet angrily. "Sc-Scottie, if that's you I'm going to-" Throwing the doors open, Allistor was not the sight he saw. It was Connor.

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><p>Seeing my brother like that was unnerving. I had always cherished my brothers dearly and being the youngest, I often relied on them for comfort and safety when things became scary being a Nation. Apart from Frog-face, I had no Guardian figure apart from my brothers. His face is one I'll never forget when I saw him in that cupboard. His eyes were wide and un-seeing; staring right through my head towards the door I had entered only minutes ago. His complexion was pale and drained, as if he had seen a Ghost himself. It was as if he was too scared to look anywhere else, even too scared to blink.<p>

"Connor...?"

The only reply Connor gave was his trembles causing the chattering of his teeth.

"Where are the others?"

No change.

I frowned and crossed my arms at this. "I'm not falling for this joke of yours."

Still no change.

I still believed it was some kind of joke. Connor was too easily shook up and often ran for Allistor for safety in any kind. So him acting like he was all scared and defenceless wasn't exactly surprising. But his expression - I didn't realise it until too late that it was one of true, pure fear. Not fear of what's under the bed or missing a deadline - but fear of something near and something that was haunting you, waiting just around the corner to then reach out and take you for the kill. I sighed and shook my head before heading over to the desk before pushing the chair aside. Instead of another brother, I found a key labelled Library Key. "Well, it's better than nothing." I mused, standing up and pocketing the key. "Connor, are you coming with me?"

This time Connor did respond. But only with his head moving side to side a fraction in the form of saying no.

"I guess I better find this place. Goodbye, Connor."

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later and a good inspection of doors later, Arthur found the door to the library. It was on the right corridor on the Ground floor, the one he had missed when heading for the kitchen-living room-thing. Upon entering, he was amazed at the sight of the books. Rows upon rows with bookshelves leading up to the ceiling; such a marvelling sight, he'd almost forgotten his earlier grumblings about the amount of locked doors there were. But the marvels were short lived as he spotted again, the same Shadow from the bathroom dart across the room and hide behind one of the many bookshelves around. He stiffened from fear for the second time. Seeing a Shadow once and it disappearing was just something to laugh at. Seeing it twice was something to take more seriously. "...Scottie?" The Brit dared to call, his voice barely getting out as his dried mouth attempted to operate. "Is that you? Jack, are you helping him?" His body now decided it would move itself. Cautiously he checked everywhere in the room, down the rows of corridors the shelves made, even going so far as to climb one and check the small space between the top shelf and the ceiling. When he found nothing, he scowled and wandered towards the large oak desk in the lower left area of the Library. "Blast them both... Just bugger it all!" He muttered bitterly to himself as he gazed up at the nearest bookshelf. 'I could spend all day here reading. But I've got to find Allistor and Jack before Connor and I can leave...' He walked around the desk, now becoming more aware of how to look for things around in the mansion. Inspect everything to find something useful. Shifting some of the books that were littered about on the table, he discovered a small key, this one labelled 'Bedroom Key'. "Really now. Is the owner of this Mansion so forgetful that he has to label each and every key he owns?" This made Arthur pause. It was a good idea if anything. Plus he often found himself forgetting which key was for which door in the Monastery and Castle - they all looked the same plus OTHER things clouded his teenage mind. 'Perhaps it is a good idea after all-'<p>

_HIIIISSSSSSSS..._

Arthur's heart skipped a beat. Did he just hear a... a hiss...? Slowly, the Brit turned his head and looked up towards the bookshelf to the immediate left of him. The sight made his gut drop - it was the Shadow. Three times seeing this made it definite; this thing wasn't his imagination at all. A nervous laugh escaped his lips and dry mouth. "...Scot...tie...?" He called, barely more than a whisper.

_HIIIIISSSSSS..._

Another hiss. Slowly, the Shadow crept out from darkness and padded silently towards the frightened teen into the light. And Arthur saw it. Everything seemed to freeze, even time itself. The only thing he was aware of was him and the thing before him. As if blinded, he became too scared even to scream.

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><p>I have to admit, that one moment was the scariest in my entire life. My whole body had frozen up, my mind was numb and I could barely think straight. Just that... that THING in front of me and the key in my hands was the only thing I was fully aware of. 'Oh my Goodness...' That was the first thing that sprang to mind as I watched the monster creeping towards me. It was twice my height and bulky, rippling muscles flexing underneath its tough purple hide. It had hands with palms bigger than my head - it could have easily crushed it under the sheer weight and size. But its face... One eye was larger than the other, yet both pupils were dilated as if it wasn't used to the light. The more I think back, the more I realised it could have been scared. But that couldn't be true for that blasted monster let out an ear-deafening shriek and charged at me at full force, bloodlust hot within its deformed and vile expression. Fortunately, it was the that very shriek that pulled me out of my fear and got my feet going as I ran away from the vile monster, it hot on my trail.<p>

* * *

><p>Arthur ran like he had never ran before. His legs ached from his sprints and his lungs burned for air that his body used faster than he could breathe. Letting out another burst of non-existent energy, he sprinted down the corridor, sliding around the corner and towards the second floor bedroom that his older brother was hiding inside. He couldn't protect himself as a small Nation. But two small Nations can make one big one. Throwing open the door, he slammed it behind him and wasted no time rushing towards the cupboard in which his brother sat. "C-Connor!" He panted, out of breath. "We've got to leave here! We've got to-!" As Arthur threw open the doors to the closet, he wasn't greeted by his brother's petrified face. Instead, he was greeted by the back of the cupboard with nothing inside except for a plain white handkerchief with the initials C.K. embroidered on the corner. For a moment, the young Brit was in a state of shock. Where was his brother? He didn't pass him on the way up here and there was nowhere else he could go - every door just wouldn't open except the ones he had already done so. But his ponderings were cut short as the purple monster behind him crashed into the door and burst into the door, it spotting Arthur and lunging with renowned bloodlust at the sight of the kill. Grasping the hankie, Arthur ducked under a grasping hand and bolted for the door, running out and down the corridor. Yet after only taking a few steps, that same blood-curdling shriek was let out and all was quiet. Silently, Arthur froze up in the corridor as he surveyed his area with intense caution. The Monster had disappeared - it had just vanished into thin air. That or it was still lurking about in the bedroom Connor used to be in. With a sigh of immense relief, the Brit leant against the wall before sliding to the floor and tried to catch his breath. 'What... What was that bloody monstrosity?' He asked himself as his heart pounded a mile a minute. 'This feels too real... This isn't a joke... It can't be...' Arthur calmed himself, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his big brother's handkerchief, daintily holding it in his hands as his thumbs traced the tiny stitches that made up the initials. 'This is Connor's - I remember sewing this on as him and Jack kept mixing theirs up... Connor finds this too precious - he'd never abandon it even if it meant trailing all around London to find where he had dropped it.' A smile went across Arthur's face, remembering the time when Connor had spent almost all night looking for this bloody piece of cloth during a visit to Arthur's home. But memories weren't what Arthur needed to be thinking about now. Shaking his head, he stood up and pocketed the handkerchief again before taking out the key. "We need to escape here. And I think this is only the beginning..." Wandering over to the first door in front of him, he slid the key into the lock (which to his ultimate surprise and happiness) and turned it to unlock the door. Leaving the key as it was, he entered the room and shut the door behind his trembling self.<p>

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><p>Please rate and review! I became inspired for this story when I decided to start Ao Oni 5.2 again (I got stuck in the basement with no way out, pathetic isn't it?). It suddenly struck me. Apart from the one time England had a flashback of him as a teenchild of his brother Scotland prodding him as a bird with a death threat, England's older brothers were never mentioned. And as a fan of HetaOni, this was just all too good.

Paradichloricbenzene x


	2. Don't Yer Know Anythin!

I wrote this wearing my trusty Pikachu hat.  
>I also had to ban myself from watching pewdiepie videos in order to get this done - Penumbra, Amnesia, Nosferatu, Ao Oni, and Bong Cheon Dong Ghost - all of these gaming series are too addicting to watch him scream like a girl and scare himself. If you've never heardwatched pewdiepie, I suggest you do and watch his Ao Oni play through - you'll cry with laughter.

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><p>SLUUUURRRRRRRRPPP!<br>Eh? Where the bloody hell did you get that cola from?  
>Huh? Oh, I've had it on me for awhile. But tell me more of this story!<br>I thought you hated ghosts.  
>Gh-Gh-Ghost? Th-Th-That thing w-w-was a Gh-Gh-Ghost!<br>Well, I don't really know myself but- Hang on a mo, you're actually interested?  
>Duh.<br>Sh-Shut up git!

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><p>Arthur looked up from closing the door, only to be greeted by plain surroundings yet again. This bedroom was the same size as the previous one he had encountered, yet had more inside. To the immediate right, a glass-paned cupboard full of books and a wardrobe. In front, ANOTHER cream carpet (they seem to love their cream carpets) with three beige love seats sat upon it facing each other, centring around a coffee table in the middle. To the upper left of him, two plain white beds with their plain white sheets. As usual, the Brit inspected every area of the room, taking in as much information from the little provided on the ordinary room. 'This just looks like a normal room...' He pondered, finding nothing interesting which was something odd for this mansion. Normally there would be interesting things everywhere, be it the plainness in an extravagant room to a- hello, what is this? Padding over, Arthur had discovered that the bed furthest away from him was next to a patch of flooring that was definitely a few shades lighter than the rest of the wooden flooring. Interesting object? Check - it was the bed and flooring. He circled the area of his choice, trained British eyes searching for anything out of place. And that came in the form of a sheet of paper sticking out from underneath the pillow. Snatching the paper as if it would suddenly disappear if he didn't, he pulled out the sheet and stared at the squiggles he found upon it with utter bewilderment. "... I don't have a bloody clue what this is supposed to mean." With a hopeless sigh, he sat down on the surprisingly comfy bed (it's a bloody mansion, what else would he expect?) only to hear a small click. That didn't sound good. Suddenly the bed started to slide backwards, leaving the Brit only moments to spring away and stare in shock as the flooring disappeared to reveal a gaping hole where the bed had once occupied. This had shaken him up. Taking a moment to catch his breath, Arthur eventually shuffled over to the hole and peered inside. It was too dark to see anything except a faint glow of white. 'White is good, right? Wait, hang on, is that a piano...?' With a final thought, he decided to take a sweep over the room with his eyes as he dangled his legs over the side. Yet as paranoia began to settle in from the fact that any time, he could be dragged into the room by the Monster, he decided there was nothing more he could do but jump down into the pit.<p>

"Nnghnn... Ahhn..." Arthur's moans of pain didn't sound anything sexual. Rubbing his poor bottom, he sat up to peer around the slightly darker room. As his eyes adjusted themselves in the dim light, he discovered he was inside a Piano Room. "Hm. I guess this Mansion has class AFTER all." He remarked, standing up and finding the light switch before turning it on. He hadn't prepared for how WHITE the room was. The walls, the ceiling, the furniture, everything but the black piano in the room were white. As his pupils dilated to the right size so everything he took in was comfortably un-blinding, he began to inspect the piano instantly. And almost instantly, he spotted red liquid upon the keys of C, D and E, dribbling down onto the floor. The young Nation went pale and dizzy. Blood wasn't the thing he needed to see right now. In a desperate attempt to stable himself, he found himself sinking to the floor where the blood has dripped. The second his palm met contact with the liquid; he jumped almost a mile away but then discovered it was dry. Dry still wasn't good enough for him. Yet the smell was. It smelt of chemicals and preservatives, like the compounds within paint that made it last. He let out a breath he didn't even realise he was holding. "It's just paint... But, why would there be paint of a bloody piano?" He sat up on his knees, staring at the caked keys in front of him, just under his nose. No doubt it was paint - he could smell the strong aroma from where his nose was a few inches above the piano. Reaching up to the keys, he scratched the stuff. 'It's too thick to even chip it away with nails. Bollocks...' Admitting a silent defeat, Arthur stood up and headed over to the bookshelves which upon deep inspection, he discovered were touch sensitive like the bed in the room above. One touch of his hand caused the bookshelves to split apart and reveal a safe in the wall behind them. "Why does everything here insist upon sliding around to scare me?" He protested to seemingly no one, his after shock of this small jump-scare settling into him. Another sigh; this place was going to age him a few centuries within the space of a few hours. Just in case, the Brit reached over and tested the handle. Either it was definitely locked or jammed. He hoped the former. In silent defeat again, he wandered back to the piano. He hadn't seen these things very often - a trip to France showed these things everywhere in his home and they emitted a lovely sound. Music soothes the soul, right? Soothing was just the ticket for this jumpy Nation. Without heed for who heard, he reached down and played three notes only to recoil when the piano shrieked mistuned notes. 'How horrid - it sounds nothing like Frog-Face's pianos!' That's when it hit Arthur. He must have been blind not to notice before! Scrambling to bring out the paper from his pockets, he looked down at the symbols then at the piano keys. They were the same. "They're the same shape yet I STILL don't understand this!" He cried out in frustration, roughly pocketing the sheet of paper (yet careful not to rip it) before staring down at the keys again. His green eyes trailed to the blood red paint yet again. 'I need to get something off this... There were Bathrooms downstairs, maybe they have toilet cleaner or something like that to get this off...' At the end of that thought, Arthur was by the door. It was locked, yet thankfully from the inside. Turning it, he smiled at the thought he was making progress and headed out.

"Bloody Hell, what was I thinking? Last time I checked, both doors were lo-"

Arthur's bitter mutterings were cut short as he spotted the right bathroom door open unlike last time - the very bathroom door where he spotted the Monster's shadow. The flash back created a tremble throughout his body yet in thought of finding his brothers (or at least one) and escaping was too great. The good of the many over the one and all that! Shaking his head of the scary thoughts, he padded slowly over to the Bathroom whilst hugging the wall. England didn't just boast about their Intelligence - he could live up to that. With a bob in his Adam's apple from the huge gulp of fear he choked down, he spied inside to see no one. Thank God for that. Unstitching himself from the wall, he walked confidently inside of the, what he actually discovered to live up to its name, Bathroom. There was a sanity bin and sink with lighted mirror in front of him and to the left, a huge pink bath. A small giggle escaped from him, remembering how Frog-Face actually had a pink bath yet that giggle was short lived. Why was the bath full of murky water? With a shudder, the young Nation approached the bath side. The content of the bath was FAR from water. It had a thick layer of purple like sludge that bubbled every so often. It smelt of sewage, oil and grease - the shine gave away everything he needed to know past that - it was disgusting! By choice, Arthur would of left the it alone except for one thing. Momentarily when the sludge parted to reveal the murky, stagnant water below, he caught the sight of something glinting - something key shaped glinting. Muttering as many curse words he knew under the sun, he rolled up his sleeves almost to his armpits before holding his breath as he used one hand to waft away the sludge whilst the other groped for the key in blind sight. The texture could have been worse than the smell and sight combined. It was like... Arthur couldn't think of how to describe it. It was slimy and gooey and lumpy and occasionally something suddenly swam away from his hand like a fish would. In shock, he pulled the plug on the bottom of the bath, watching with relief as the substance easily slid down the drain without taking the key with it. Grasping the disgustingly coated thing, he shook the remains of the sludge from his arms and hands before wiping away the sludge on the key. Barely readable, he could see if he squinted that it was labelled 'Attic'. "Not entirely useful RIGHT now, but good enough." He pocketed it before testing the water in the sink, hoping to wash his hands but to no luck. No water came out. 'How does that work then? Unless the substance in the water WAS stagnant water from when the water worked...' The Brit prayed it was. The colour of it was only a few shades off from the creature's skin. With that, Arthur left the room to test the second door, only to find it opened now unlike before. Confused, he carefully entered whilst checking everywhere for an ambush. A quick yet through search gave him the green light to relax his cautions... for now. Instantly opening every cupboard he found, it wasn't long before he found a can of liquid detergent. "It'll have to do." He told himself, opening it to discover a whole bottle's worth to his relief. Now it was time to return to the Piano Room.

"Paint - be gone." Arthur allowed his normally formal grammar to slip as he opened the bottle and pulled out the handkerchief from his pocket. "I hope Connor can forgive me for sullying this." He then proceeded to dump the foul smelling detergent (must have gone off from disuse) onto Connor's handkerchief before placing the empty bottle upon the piano. Bunching up the fabric, he began to clean to keys of paint, listening to the out-of-tune piano shriek and moan in a pathetic attempt to play the notes of C, D and E. After only a minute or two, Arthur stopped to admire his handiwork. "It's coming off, thank god." True enough, almost all of it was gone from his scrubbing. Determined with a new drive to rid the piano of the paint, he scrubbed away at it until finally it sparkled with clean. That said, if the little Nation had scrubbed any harder, he may have completely rubbed out the almost faded numbers written upon the keys. Two, three and nine. Arthur inspected these numbers, taking a mental note. "If that's the combination for the safe, I don't see how three numbers can match to two scribbles and four digits." Scowling, he pocketed the handkerchief and sighed. "Blast it." He needed to think without fear of that Monster - he had never worked well under pressure. Turning, he leaned back against the piano to see a shadow at his feet that wasn't his. Raising an eyebrow, the Nation followed the shadow's cast to look at the opposite end of the room.

* * *

><p>Its shoulders heaved with manic anticipation from its breathing, its eyes locked directly upon me. Tilted to the side and slightly backwards, its bloodshot eyes dilated to small dots in the huge swelling of its white eyes. I barely had time to react before it began to grin like a mad man. Man - why was I making it sound so close to me by calling it a Man? I observed it closely, my whole body screaming to run yet my mind wanted to inspect. It had blood and shredded... skin... between its teeth with many rows of them like a shark. I prayed that the blood wasn't fresh otherwise my fears of Connor's sudden disappearance may have come true. Enough was enough, my mind had seen too much and now my gut was taking charge. I ran.<p>

Without realising, I found myself to be running towards Connor's old hiding place. My sudden bolting had given me a few steps advantage and by the time I was through the door into the second bedroom, it had only reached the top of the stairs, running and shuffling like a mad man as well- I needed to stop calling it a man of any sort. I didn't even bother to be formal and shut the door behind me - I simply ran for the cupboard and sprang inside, barely shutting the doors behind me as the creature itself burst through. The sound of something being throw across the room and hitting the very cupboard I was in resonated, it scaring the living daylights out of me. Yet fortunately, my cupboard doors held to conceal me, blood tasting in my mouth as I bit my bottom lip hard. If it could hear, it probably would have heard my blasted heart hammering away in my chest like a thousand drums at once. After what seemed like hours, I heard the shuffling and shambling get quieter as the Monster crept away into comfort of its many-roomed mansion. Yet I didn't believe it quiet yet. I waited until my legs cramped from the tight space I was sitting in and my back hurt from hunching to keep myself fit snugly inside. Only then, did I allow myself the luxury of opening the doors a crack. One sweep of the room told me it was gone and it was then when I got out. In the Monster's blood lust fuelled rage, it had thrown the coffee table across the room and now lay at the foot of the cupboard in pieces. If it could do that to a solid wood table, what could it do to me?

* * *

><p>The next place Arthur decided to explore was the Attic, as he had only recently came across the key to the place. Heading up the stairs, he used the key to unlock the room only to discover a whole load of nothing. Except for a rickety table and chair, red sofa full of holes and springs, another cupboard and a door, there was nothing of interest in the room. There wasn't even a point to explore the area. The Brit instantly marched to the other door, hoping it was another room but this time full of useful things like weapons or keys. When he discovered it wasn't locked, he triumphantly opened the door to be met with the wall behind it. Arthur remained in this position for a time, before his fat bushy eyebrows twitched in utter annoyance. 'Bloody hell...'<p>

An ACTUAL door led him to another room on the second floor. It was a reference library, full of files upon random facts, mostly newspaper clippings about things he didn't understand and bored him - there was no point searching through this library like there was searching through the last; though he did inspect again until he came across a frame upon the wall. Things liked to be hidden behind picture frames quiet a lot. With renewed hope, he almost skipped over to the picture frame. A safe? An OPEN safe? A key? A clue? His mind went through all the possibilities as he approached the bolted... to the wall... picture frame... "Bollocks." And just when he was expecting something nice. Yet sudden sound of the door slamming open broke Arthur from his depression. Without a second thought, he pinned it down to the Monster's random appearance and was ready to bolt as soon as he spotted its purple, disgusting face. But from around the corner, it wasn't the Monster that appeared.

It was Allistor - Scottie.

* * *

><p>Relief is an understatement on how I felt the second I saw the fiery ginger hair and brilliant green eyes of my big brother. It was as if everything had just suddenly became alright - as if the sudden situation I was in had melted away. There was no Monster, there was no creepy mansion, and there was no danger. Yet despite my hopeless beliefs, we were still in that mansion, in that constant danger but at least now Scottie was here with me.<p>

"Sc-Scottie?"

"Iggy! Yer alright!" His thick Scottish accent was full of happiness as suddenly the next thing I knew was being surrounded and smothered by blue fabric - my head was in his shoulder and he was hugging so tightly, I could barely breathe. "Y-Yes, somehow..." I managed to choke out, resisting the urge to break down into tears and wail.

"Arthur... 'Ave you seen it too...? That Monster..." He murmured, slowly releasing his grip on me as his once beaming face turned serious. As did mine.

"Yes..." I nodded, standing up straight as I was freed of the confines of his arms. "But it's still hard to believe such a creature exists..."

"On top of that, all the exits are sealed! We got ourselves trapped!"

"It seems that way, yes..." I recalled trying the front door in belief that they had simply barricaded it. If only I had something to break it down then - I could have escaped. I could have mentally slapped myself after realising what I just thought. Leave my brothers to die? I'd rather not! Suddenly a firm hand was placed on my shoulder, squeezing it gently as green eyes full of determination bore into my soul. "Let's split up an' search some more. I'll look around on the ground floor." With that, the grip was gone and Scottie was heading towards the door again.

"W-Wait!" Who voiced that? Oh, it must have been me, because now I found myself grasping Allistor's arm tightly in fear of letting go.

"Eh? What's yankin yer chain?" The Scots-man turned to look at me over his shoulder.

"W-Well, have you seen Connor?"

"Connor? Nope, ain't seen him."

I sighed. Darn, that wasn't fair. "I did find him you see. He was in the closet in the second bedroom here but when I came back when being chased by that Monster-"

"You went BACK?"

My explanations were cut short from that outburst. In shock, I stood there staring at the older man. "Y-Yes... I-I mean, I thought he could-"

"Don't yer know ANYTHIN'?" Scottie turned around to face me, fury and hate in his eyes. And it was directed at me. I'd never seen my Scottie so mad before, it was extremely scary. Between him and the Monster right now? Where the bloody hell was the Monster! "Connor can't do shaite in a situation like that! He'd tremble and yer both be dead! What was yer thinkin'?" He shouted, shoving my trembling frame backwards so I was now up against the wall.

"Two Nations are better than one...?" I suggested quietly before my brain suddenly processed what he had actually said. "And what do you mean, 'dead'?"

"Yer an absolute idiot - we AIN'T Nations in 'ere." Allistor crossed his arms, glaring down at me. This took me by surprise. The last thing ANY Nation admitted to, even ones faking, that they were Human. It was an insult of the highest kind!

"I got maself cut on the shin earlier. Normally it would heal straight away but this one?" He stomped his foot on the wall, missing my head by a couple of inches. I always wondered how Scottie could be so flexible like that. Reaching up, he pulled down his trouser leg to reveal a large gash across his shin. It was bruised black and blue around yet the wound was dark red as bloodstained heavily. "It wouldn't stop bleedin for ages. Like a HUMAN. We're HUMAN ere, dumbshit!" With this, he returned his foot back to the floor, glaring at me still. How was I supposed to know? I hadn't hurt myself or died! Why did he assume that I was just an idiot who knew nothing?

"Well, excuse ME you tosser!" Salty tears began to stain my face. I had to admit, when I was younger my backbone was weak and my angry was wet behind the ears, nowhere close to my pirate late teens, early twenties. I would cry when frustrated and angry. "How was I supposed to know you bloody git? This whole mansion is simply poppycock and you think I should stop to question my OWN species?" This point needed to get across to that thick-headed sheep humper! However my angry outbursts and bunched fists were met with Scottish indifference. If Scottie didn't like what you had just said to him, Scottie did NOT like it. It resolved down to two things. Punch and kick the living day lights out of the poor bloke or storm away in a huff of rage. Fortunately for me, it boiled down to the latter. "Whaaatever." He remarked, flicking my forehead before turning on his heel. "Jus' don't get killed and don't let anyone else die." And with that, Scottie disappeared from sight, slamming the door behind him as he left. At the sudden realisation I had just pretty much made the only hope of company leave me and never want to talk to me until his rage boiled down, my anger calmed into pure sadness. "...Scottie..."

* * *

><p>Arthur rarely cried. When this Kings and Queens died, he didn't. When he became hurt, he didn't. But the news he had received from Allistor and the fact he had left him alone had shook the salty sweet water from him. "I'm Human... I can die... WE can die... Oh god... G-God..." He slumped against the wall, sinking to the floor as the tears didn't stop flowing. He wanted to scream and pull out his eyebrows yet the sudden appearance of paper in his lap made him stop before he could abuse the wonderful Iggybrows. "Huh?" He wiped his tears on the cuff of his sleeve. "What's this?"<p>

'Stretch them, side by side. Which one is longest? Which on small? Then line them up alright. Small at the bottom; on top the tall.'

"What the bloody hell is this supposed to mean?" Arthur weakly stood up, staring at the sheet of paper in his hands before looking at the picture frame he originally had interest in. There were five buttons set into the wall as well as five button sized indents above them in a column. Th, IF, MR, RF, LF were what the buttons were labelled. Bewildered, the Nation (he wasn't even sure if he was allowed to call himself that now) re-read the bizarre inscription in his hands yet still finding no clue. Tears still stung his eyes, threatening to flow again and the water loss had made his mind fuzzy. "What am I supposed to bloody stretch?" He asked himself, turning and in a small temper tantrum, he placed his head on the wall with a loud thud, his forearms resting either side with the inscription crumpled in his fist in annoyance. 'This house is full of puzzles... I haven't even found a lighter for the memo and opened the safe, let alone solve this one. Plus practically every door is locked!' It was official. There was nothing Arthur could do anymore. He would starve to death or be mauled or eaten by that Monster. Again, the door opened behind him as the soft steps of his big brother's shoes filled the place. His footsteps were heavy, but Arthur knew since all three of his brothers were absolutely rubbish at trying to keep themselves hidden whilst sneaking, his heavy foot falls were nothing. "Go away Scottie." He ordered bitterly.

There was no reply, just the heavy foot falls.

"Go away."

Step. Step. Step. Step.

"I said, PISS OFF!" Arthur span around.

Silence.

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><p>Terribly sorry, ayanami-verloren, for your lack of sleep because of my story however, yours and Obsessive-Fan Number 1's reviews inspired me to write this next chapter. notthatiwasn'talreadygoingtowritethisshot

Plus, I was surprised by how many people read this even though they didn't favorite or review. 145 hits and 141 visitors in two and a half days? It may not seem much but for me, that is a compliment. This chapter is left on a cliffhanger!

Please rate and review like before, I may start handing out Krispy Kremes and Bacon for all who do so.

Paradichloricbenzene x


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